Jerboa

Dipus sp. 

Where is it found?

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Deserts

Diet and foraging method

Key adaptations

They have long hind feet that they use for hopping, similar to a kangaroo. Their long tail helps them to balance whilst jumping. Jerboa have sandy coloured fur to blend into their desert habitat.

Social organisation and mating system

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Solitary
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Polygynous

Did you know that...?

They don’t drink liquid water despite living in very hot places, this is because they hide in their burrows during the day to conserve water and obtain all the water they need from their food, primarily seeds and insects, that they find during the night.

Taxonomy

Picture

Picture credits:


Maps from: http://species.mol.org/species/
"Allactaga elater Plzen zoo 02.2011" by Николай Усик / http://paradoxusik.livejournal.com/ - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Allactaga_elater_Plzen_zoo_02.2011.jpg#/media/File:Allactaga_elater_Plzen_zoo_02.2011.jpg
"Allactaga major" by Gustav Mützel - scan. Licensed under Public Domain via Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Allactaga_major.jpg#/media/File:Allactaga_major.jpg
"Jerboa (PSF)" by Pearson Scott Foresman - Archives of Pearson Scott Foresman, donated to the Wikimedia Foundation→This file has been extracted from another file: PSF J-500001.png.. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jerboa_(PSF).png#/media/File:Jerboa_(PSF).png